A variety of hangers for the hanging of plural garments is presently known, the garments being typically companion parts of a given outfit, e.g., the jacket and trousers of a man's suit or the jacket and skirt of a woman's suit. The hanger conventionally has a main or body part with a hook portion for the hanging of the hanger from a support rod, the body part further defining a central opening bounded in part by a cross-member. The body part receives and support the first garment and the cross-member receives and supports the second garment. In widely known such hangers, the cross-member supports the second garment simply by passing the same through the central opening in overlapped relation to the cross-member.
More interactive such hangers for plural garment support are known, wherein the second garment is positively supported by engagement of an end thereof by biased jaw members associated with the cross-member. One such more interactive hanger construction is seen in Esposito, Jr. U.S. Pat. No. 3,292,223, entitled "Integral Snap-Action Clips" and issued on Feb. 20, 1966. This hanger is seen as relevant to the invention herein, to the extent that a snap-hinge is employed in the support of such second garment from a hanger, as is shown in FIG. 7 of the '223 patent. In the '223 patent approach, the cross-member of the hanger is ensnared within the snap-hinge jointly with jaw member engagement of the second garment. An advantage, other than the positive retention of the second garment, resides in that the hanger and snap-hinge attachment may be separately shipped and inventoried. However, applicants herein see a disadvantage in the '223 patent hanger in that the snap-hinges become readily separated from the hanger proper once a customer opens the snap-hinge, such as when removing the second garment to try it on or to more closely inspect it.